revolutionary
Dramatically changing everything
Revolutionary describes something that brings about fundamental, dramatic change—overturning established systems or ways of thinking.
A revolutionary idea transforms a field; revolutionary technology disrupts entire industries.
The word also relates to political revolutions: revolutionary forces, revolutionary movements.
As a noun, a revolutionary is someone who advocates or participates in overthrowing a government or social order: The revolutionaries stormed the capital.
Authority defier
- agitatorOne who foments discord
- dissidentOpposer of established systems
- radicalRoot-indicating symbol
- insurgentOne who revolts
guerrilla · partisan · militant · subversive · firebrand · zealot · comrade · cadre
Introducing new ideas
- groundbreakingIntroducing radical new ideas
- pioneeringFirst to explore territory
- avant-gardeInnovative cultural pioneers
- trailblazingBeing the first through
disruptive · breakthrough · state-of-the-art · game-changing · unprecedented · novel · futuristic · advanced
Communist theory follower
- socialistProponent of collective ownership
- communistCollectivist political adherent
- anarchistOne opposing all governance
- BolshevikSoviet communist party member
Trotskyist · Maoist · syndicalist · leftist · radical · anti-capitalist · collectivist · egalitarian
Violent uprising against authority
- rebellionDefiance of established power
- coupAbrupt seizure of power
- uprisingOrganized resistance to power
- mutinyRevolt against authority
insurgency · resistance · overthrow · liberation · guerrilla · barricades · sedition · subversion
Complete systematic repair
- upheavalViolent disturbance of order
- metamorphosisProfound biological restructuring
- reinventionComplete self-transformation
- sea-changeRadical, sweeping transformation
reformation · restructuring · modernization · renewal · evolution · transition · reshaping · reconfiguration
Imaginative planner of futures
- pioneerEarly explorer or settler
- trailblazerFirst to forge ahead
- inventorCreator of original devices
- groundbreakerInnovator, first to act
genius · creator · architect · originator · mastermind · maverick · iconoclast · disruptor
1790s French extremist
- sans-culottesRevolutionary French working-class radicals
- guillotineVertical beheading apparatus
- BastilleParis fortress-prison
- RobespierreRevolutionary who devoured himself
Terror · republic · tricolor · Marseillaise · aristocracy · bourgeoisie · commune · estates
rebel
Authority defier
insurgent · guerrilla · partisan · militant · subversive · firebrand · zealot · comrade · cadre · vanguard
innovative
Introducing new ideas
- groundbreakingIntroducing radical new ideas
- pioneeringFirst to explore territory
- avant-gardeInnovative cultural pioneers
trailblazing · disruptive · breakthrough · state-of-the-art · game-changing · unprecedented · novel · futuristic · advanced · leading-edge
Marxist
Communist theory follower
- socialistProponent of collective ownership
- communistCollectivist political adherent
- anarchistOne opposing all governance
Bolshevik · Trotskyist · Maoist · syndicalist · leftist · radical · anti-capitalist · collectivist · egalitarian · proletarian
insurrection
Violent uprising against authority
- rebellionDefiance of established power
- coupAbrupt seizure of power
- uprisingOrganized resistance to power
mutiny · insurgency · resistance · overthrow · liberation · guerrilla · barricades · sedition · subversion · riot
overhaul
Complete systematic repair
- upheavalViolent disturbance of order
- metamorphosisProfound biological restructuring
- reinventionComplete self-transformation
sea-change · reformation · restructuring · modernization · renewal · evolution · transition · reshaping · reconfiguration · breakthrough
visionary
Imaginative planner of futures
- pioneerEarly explorer or settler
- trailblazerFirst to forge ahead
- inventorCreator of original devices
groundbreaker · genius · creator · architect · originator · mastermind · maverick · iconoclast · disruptor · reformer
Jacobin
1790s French extremist
- sans-culottesRevolutionary French working-class radicals
- guillotineVertical beheading apparatus
- BastilleParis fortress-prison
Robespierre · Terror · republic · tricolor · Marseillaise · aristocracy · bourgeoisie · commune · estates · Thermidor
- buzzwordssynergy, leverage, paradigm, stakeholder, scalable
- long wordssupercalifragilisticexpialidocious, antidisestablishmentarianism, incomprehensibilities, electroencephalograph, internationalization
- Communist ChinaCommunist Party, People's Republic, Great Leap Forward, Gang of Four, Central Committee
- dissidentsdissident, dissidents, dissenter, rebel, Sakharov
- nonstate actorsmilitia, insurgent, rebel group, guerrilla, paramilitary
- reformersreformers, reformer, social reformers, social reformer, political reformer
revolutionaryincremental
Proceeding by small additions
gradual · evolutionary · moderate · reformist · cautious
revolutionarycounterrevolutionary
One opposing radical overthrow
counter-revolutionary · reactionary · conservative · traditionalist · rightist
- revolutionary spiritDrive for radical transformation
- revolutionary heroCelebrated leader of uprising
- revolutionary womenWomen seeking systemic upheaval
- Revolutionary WarColonial uprising against Britain
- revolutionary ideasConcepts demanding fundamental change
- revolutionary movementStruggle to transform society
revolutionaries, counterrevolutionary, counter-revolutionary, counter-revolutionaries